Stubborn Hearts
by TrixieKrueger
Summary: Maybe they say "opposites attract" for a reason. Especially if both parties are too stubborn to admit what they really want, even if it costs them everything. One Shot.


**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

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She brushed her hair back out of her face sighing from the frustration of the week laid out ahead of her. Patricia had tried out the 'real world' for a few years after graduation from Anubis, diving straight into it with no support whatsoever from her parents or her sister. And though it wasn't one of her finest moments, she had eventually had to crawl her way back to them and admit defeat.

By that time, Piper was well on her way to her first degree at university. She was ahead of her required coursework, typical, but she had readily agreed to take time out to help Patricia find her 'niche study'. Why she couldn't just call it 'finding what you're good at', Patricia still didn't know.

It was now nearing end of her first term, which meant exams were about to slither their way into her life. Study guides and highlighted packets of paper were strewn all across the floor and the coffee table and even partially onto the kitchen counter of the small apartment the twins were sharing on campus. Her sister, to no avail, had tried to go behind her and keep it all organized according to the study strategy. _Whatever_, she thought, _like that was going to work…they shared a face, not a brain_. The mess was part of Patricia's strategy.

One of Piper's nerdy friends had called and agreed to cook them supper while she helped her slacker sister revise—because lets be honest, they _all_ knew she needed it—on the condition that Piper would come over and pick it up. Patricia may not have been quick at everything but she knew right away that the grease-ball meant "I will cook for you so you can come over and snog my face off". Her sister wasn't fooling her one bit with her "he's just a friend" spiel.

With Piper headed out to "pick up their food" she rubbed at her temples as she surveyed the extent of what they hadn't even began to touch on yet. Her phone began ringing and she made quick work of scattering paper stacks to find it. Any excuse at all for a welcomed break. The number on the screen looked familiar to her, but not identifiable. She hoped this wasn't a call to say supper got burnt…_again_.

"Hello?"

"…Uh, hey. How have you been?"

She straightened up the stack of papers she had disturbed frowning at how many pages that one section had included. "Sorry, who is this?…" she knitted her eyebrows together. Her brain was fried, but not that fried. If this was one of her friends she would recognize the voice.

There was cough or a throat clear from the other end of the line, she wasn't sure which. For the life of her she couldn't quite figure out why she hadn't just hung up on this doofus already.

"D-do you really not know who this is… Yacker?"

Her throat caved in. No. It couldn't be. They hadn't spoken, not even when they would accidentally cross paths out in public for… Well not since…

She swallowed hard and it felt like sandpaper all the way down, "Oh… Hey Eddie."

"Did you get a new phone or something? I would've thought the accent would have been a dead giveaway for sure."

"Nope, same trusty one I've always had," she feigned a cheerful attitude in spite of the audible thump of her heartbeat she was sure he could hear over the phone if not from across town.

A short breath sailed through the receiver, he was smirking at her.

"What? College life got you so fried you can't even read a caller id anymore?"

Well that answered one question buzzing through her head. For some reason and in some unknown fashion down the grapevine he had caught up on her life. Great.

"I uh…sorta deleted your number a few years ago. Didn't really think I would need it anymore…"

"Ouch. Wow, really? Didn't think it was that bad, Yacker."

She cringed at her old nickname. Yes, it _was_ that bad.

"I actually go by Patricia now. Just Patricia. …Why are you calling me, Eddie?"

Another throat clear…it was unmistakable this time. She suspected that her tone certainly hadn't encouraged him to repress it any. If he was trying to crawl back to her after another breakup just long enough to occupy his time until the next girl came along he had another thing coming.

"Well… I don't know if you've heard or not but I'm—"

"Getting married? Yeah, I know."

There was a beat of shocked silence at how plainly she had said it, "So…you _have_ heard then."

Her laugh was bitter and she would probably regret showing him the weakness later. Though she wasn't sure why she should even still care. "Yeah. The wedding invitation addressed to _Miss_ Patricia Williamson that showed up here a few weeks ago was sort of hard to miss."

His voice was suddenly hoarse and tinged with sadness, "She invited you?"

"Well, apparently somebody did."

"Oh."

"Was there anything else?"

This conversation was over. Of course he knew she had invited her, how could he not have? It was his wedding too and his fiance knew of their history. It was intentional, a declaration of victory. Message received loud and clear.

"Well, yeah…I just… And you're okay with that?"

She sighed, "Why should it matter, Eddie? You made it pretty clear a long time ago that we were over. _For. Good_. You don't need my permission to—"

"Well yeah, Yacker, but—"

"_Patricia_. And there are no but's. I stopped waiting for you and you're getting married in a few months. End of."

"You were _waiting_ for me?" He knew from the prolonged silence that he wasn't going to get anything else out of her. "That's it then?"

"Yep. What else do you want me to say?"

"I—" he sighed, "Nothing."

"Okay. Well I have an exam to study for, Piper will murder me if she finds me on the phone. And to save us all the hassle, consider this my R.S.V.P. Don't think I'll be making it to the wedding."

"Yeah sure, I get it. Tough school schedule probably…"

"Nah, not really…" She ignored the way her voice softened out from the snarl it had taken on and refused to acknowledge the sudden mental image of Eddie's face falling, "But tell your dad I said hey though, okay? Make sure he knows I'm finally making something of myself."

"Sure thing."

She refused to falter at his short and stiff response. He hadn't changed at all…he still wasn't man enough to fight for what he wanted.

After what seemed like a lifetime of eerily comfortable silence—one that maybe both of them were trying to hold onto—she sighed, this was the big one…and by the way he sighed back he obviously knew it too.

"Congratulations, Eddie… I hope it's everything you want."

She didn't allow herself to build up any hope at his long pause. At least that's what she kept telling herself.

"Thanks. Goodbye…Yacker…"

"Bye…_Krueger_."

Patricia had thought he hadn't heard his whispered nickname cross her lips for the last time, but the stabbing at his heart that matched her own knew best of all.

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**The End.**


End file.
